UAL is planning a media blitz this week to promote its new fractional ownership venture, Avolar, with ads in major newspapers.The promotional campaign comes as UAL continues to seek outside investors to buy a majority interest in Avolar. "It's important that we continue to work to make this UAL subsidiary as attractive as possible to potential investors and customers," Chairman and CEO Jack Creighton said in an internal memo to employees.
ROCKWELL COLLINS TDR-94 and TDR-94D Mode S transponders (Docket No. 2000-CE-32-AD) - proposes to require that the unit be modified to prevent erroneous altitude reporting. The proposed AD is the result of reports that erroneous altitude resolutions could occur when the affected transponders are used in areas with other airplanes equipped with certain aircraft collision avoidance system (ACAS) or traffic alert and collision avoidance system (TCAS) configurations.
XCOR AEROSPACE demonstrated a modified Long-EZ aircraft powered by two liquid fuel rocket engines in Mojave, Calif. "The EZ-Rocket provides us with a major step forward in routine operations of liquid-fueled rocket vehicles," said XCOR President Jeff Greason. "The next step is to build a higher performance vehicle that can generate revenue through routine and reliable suborbital transportation."
Robert L. Horowitz, a 29-year aerospace industry veteran, was named chief operating officer of Raytheon Aircraft Company last Thursday. Horowitz, who had been vice president of operations and quality for Raytheon's Electronic Systems business in El Segundo, Calif., was named COO of the Wichita aircraft manufacturer by Jim Schuster, chairman and CEO of RAC. Schuster, who has made a number of organizational changes since assuming control of the troubled aircraft manufacturing unit in mid-year (BA, Oct.
BOEING Model B-17E, F, and G airplanes (Docket No. 95-NM-15-AD; Amendment 39-12485; AD 2001-22-06) - requires inspections to detect cracking and corrosion of the wing spar chords, bolts and bolt holes of the spar chords, and wing terminals; and correction of any discrepancy found during these inspections. This amendment is prompted by reports of cracking and corrosion of the wing spar.
RAISBECK ENGINEERING signed an agreement with American Trans Air under which the airline will install the Raisbeck Hardened Cockpit Security System on its entire fleet of Boeing 737 and 757 aircraft. These include 12 delivered (of 49 ordered) 737s, as well as 20 of their 25 ordered 757s. ATA and Raisbeck are in discussions with Boeing about equipping the balance of the carrier's new aircraft with the Raisbeck cockpit system prior to delivery to ATA.
MICHAEL GIRPS was appointed general manager of Jet Aviation Engineering Services based in Spring Branch, Texas. He will be responsible for the management of daily operations including engineering and administrative duties, sales and customer support. Girps joined Jet Aviation Basel in 1997 and has experience in completions and modification projects on several aircraft.
GEORGE A. SALING was elected chairman of the board of the National Business Aviation Association board for a two-year term. Saling is the vice president, aviation and travel services, for Philip Morris Management Corp. He is responsible for providing aviation and commercial travel support for all of Philip Morris. Before joining the company in 1991, Saling held management positions at FlightSafety International, GTE Service Corp. and Tenneco Inc.
HONEYWELL won a contract to supply its Bendix/King flight information service (FIS) products as standard equipment on Socata Trinidad piston-engine and TBM 700 turboprop aircraft delivered in the U.S. The FIS product line provides real-time local and general weather throughout the U.S. as a test or graphic display. The weather information can be transmitted through the Bendix/King KDR 510 data radio and displayed on Bendix/King KMD 5500 or KMD 850 multifunction displays. The FIS uses a newly designed wholly owned network of more than 200 ground stations.
Docket No.: FAA-2001-10509 Section of 14 CFR Affected: 14 CFR 135.143(c)(2) Description of Relief Sought/Disposition: To permit Eagle Air to operate certain aircraft under Part 135 without a TSO-C112 (Mode S) transponder installed in the aircraft. Grant, 10/05/2001, Exemption No. 7639
The Federal Aviation Administration's proposal for regulating fractional providers stems from a "buy-off deal" that trades one safety rule for another and should be withdrawn, a pilot for a major fractional provider charged. FAA released the notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) in July after gathering recommendations from a 27-member industry task force on whether fractional operations should be regulated under the same standards as Part 135 on-demand carriers or Part 91 operations (BA, July 16/25).
Congress last week stripped out a provision to require background checks on "aliens" who buy or charter aircraft before adopting the sweeping security legislation that reaches into all segments of aviation. The Aviation and Transportation Security Act, S.1447, was approved by the Senate Friday morning followed shortly by the House, overhauls aviation security in the U.S.
AIRCRAFT OWNERS AND PILOTS ASSOCIATION told its members Friday it was hoping for an imminent relaxation of airspace restrictions in the Washington, D.C. area, which would permit resumption of GA flights at some small airports in the area.
Aviation General, Inc. reported significant losses for the quarter and nine-month periods ended Sept. 30, a situation the company attributed to the slumping U.S. economy and the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. The company also said it plans to seek additional capital or a merger. The Bethany, Okla. manufacturer had a net loss of $559,764 in the third quarter, compared with net income of $252,353 during the same period a year ago. Revenues for the quarter plunged - from $4.8 million a year ago to just $1.55 million in the most recent period.
ASTRAL AVIATION, d/b/a Skyway Airlines, placed an order with Fairchild Dornier for four additional 328JETs and took options on 10 additional aircraft. The order is valued at $177 million. Skyway, a subsidiary of Midwest Express Airlines, currently operates eight 328JETs. The first of the new aircraft is scheduled for delivery in January 2002, with the remaining three to be delivered by December 2002. "The 328JET is the perfect solution to our 32-seat requirements," said Astral President James Rankin.
Docket No.: FAA-2001-10391 Section of 14 CFR Affected: 14 CFR 65.104 Description of Relief Sought: To permit Hoare to be eligible to apply for a repairman certificate for his Seaward aircraft (Registration No. N20W) without being a citizen of the United States or a lawful permanent resident of the United States.
JIM COYNE, president of the National Air Transportation Association, is hopeful that federal officials will eventually permit business aviation flights to resume at Washington Reagan National Airport. There is a strong demand among business leaders for the return of such flights and, "If our nation's premier airport is closed, it sends the wrong message," Coyne said. While some have expressed the view that airplanes flying near the nation's capital represent a threat for attacks similar to those staged on Sept.
Gulfstream Aerospace won a contract valued at $100 million to provide two Gulfstream V aircraft to the Japan Coast Guard. The contract, awarded with its Japanese partner Marubeni Aerospace, also includes engineering support for modification of the aircraft and integration of mission systems. The aircraft, which will be used for ocean surveillance and rescue missions, will be equipped with airborne surveillance radar, forward-looking infrared system and other search and rescue equipment.
Summary: Pursuant to FAA's rulemaking provisions governing the application, processing, and disposition of petitions for exemption (14 CFR Part 11), this notice contains a summary of certain petitions seeking relief from specified requirements of the Federal Aviation Regulations (14 CFR Chapter I), dispositions of certain petitions previously received, and corrections. The purpose of this notice is to improve the public's awareness of, and participation in, this aspect of FAA's regulatory activities.
GOODRICH CORP. won Technical Standard Order (TSO) approval from FAA for its new Sky Watch HP Traffic Collision Avoidance System, and the manufacturer said it plans to begin delivering the units to customers immediately. The Sky Watch HP is an active surveillance advisory system that operates as an air-to-air or ground-to-air interrogation device. After receiving replies to its interrogations, the unit computes the responding aircraft's range, bearing, relative altitude and closure rate, predicting potential traffic conflicts.
ILLINOIS GOV. George Ryan (R) and Chicago Mayor Richard Daley (D) were contemplating a compromise agreement that would keep Meigs Field open for another two years while the city works on capacity enhancement projects at O'Hare. Several Meigs advocates, including representatives from Washington, D.C.-based general aviation organizations, met with Ryan and Illinois Transportation Secretary Kirk Brown to urge their continued support of the airport.
TAG AVIATION added a Falcon 900 and a Citation X to its fleet. The Falcon 900 is based in Carlsbad, Calif., while the Citation X is based in Denver, Colo. TAG manages nearly 150 aircraft at 50 bases about the world.
UNITED AIR LINES, following the lead of regional carrier Mesa Airlines, announced Thursday that it plans to install Taser electronic stun guns in the cockpits of its aircraft to defend against hijackings. The decision is subject to FAA approval. United said the Taser weapons will be kept in electronically coded lock boxes.
Docket No.: FAA-2001-9811 Section of 14 CFR Affected: 14 CFR 61.89(a)(5) Description of Relief Sought/Disposition: To permit Fly BVI student pilots to fly between Tortola, British Virgin Islands, and the airports of the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico while fulfilling the cross-country requirements for a private pilot certificate. Grant, 10/02/2001, Exemption No. 5796D
